by Mary Munro
Waterfront Watch notes with interest the re-designed building planned for Site 10 on North Kumutoto. The main concern of Waterfront Watch, and most of those who submitted to the city council in opposition, is that this building should not be there at all.

The re-design is the result of issues raised by the public earlier this year.

This site is public land, and the waterfront is the jewel in the city’s crown. Waterfront Watch policy states that “the Wellington waterfront should be a place of public open space for people and their children, now and in the future.”

That the Council is moving towards privatizing public space by effectively selling off the site to a private developer is disgraceful.

That the council would contemplate building an office block on such an iconic site reflects a surprisingly poor understanding of Wellingtonians’ values.

Waterfront Watch remains resolutely opposed to private developments on this site, and it will always work constructively to ensure that the waterfront remains as far as possible “a natural environment where everyone can gain refreshment and relief from traffic, pollution and the noise of streets and buildings.”